


How to be a good person

by Raven_Fay



Series: Hongjoong gets the love he deserves [1]
Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Adorable Hongjoong, Adorable Yunho, Best friend Chan, Cute but protective Yunho, Fluff and Smut, Intellectual Hongjoong, M/M, Mermen San, Mermen Seongwha, Mermen Yunho, Possessive Behavior, Prince Hongjoong, Protective Hongjoong, Protective Yunho, mermaid au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-09
Updated: 2020-08-02
Packaged: 2021-01-26 08:14:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,126
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21370981
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raven_Fay/pseuds/Raven_Fay
Summary: We call them beasts or even monsters but really, we are the monsters here.They never attacked unless we were threatening them or coming near their homes.And even then they intimidated first and only did actual harm when they had no other choice left.It were us who had brought pain and horror to them not the other way around.I sighed again.I hated it.All I had ever wanted was to be a pirate, learn more about the sea and its beings and be free and have fun.But that wasn't possible because I was the prince.Aka, Prince Hongjoong meeting Mermen Seongwha, San and Yunho.
Relationships: Jeong Yunho/Kim Hongjoong
Series: Hongjoong gets the love he deserves [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1540648
Comments: 16
Kudos: 62





	1. Prologue

I had always loved the soft, calming sound of the waves hitting the sand and shores.  
The sunshine that made the water sparkle made me feel warm and helped to relax.  
"Prince Hongjoong, the king wants you to be next to him when the beasts arrive. It is time"  
I sighed but followed the soldier back to the castle.  
Beasts, that's what they called the merfolk.  
Sirens, mermaids, mermen.  
They were scared of all of them even though the sirens where the fighters and everyone else nothing but harmless, innocent civilians.  
And, of course, it were mostly mermaids and mermen that were caught and killed.  
It's always like that.  
Those who aren't fighter, who can't protect themselves, are killed by those who are ignorant and powerful.  
We call them beasts or even monsters but really, we are the monsters here.  
They never attacked unless we were threatening them or coming near their homes.  
And even then they intimidated first and only did actual harm when they had no other choice left.  
It were us who had brought pain and horror to them not the other way around.  
I sighed again.  
I hated it.  
All I had ever wanted was to be a pirate, learn more about the sea and its beings and be free and have fun.  
But that wasn't possible because I was the prince.  
I had responsibilities.  
I had to think of the rules and laws where ever I was.  
Having fun and playing around wasn't what I was supposed to do.  
I was supposed to be serious and wise all the time and to be cruel to everything that wasn't human.  
I had been thrown into prison for four weeks by my own father because I had helped a mermaid and her merchild survive the soldiers attacks.  
He had made me starve and had beaten me every day while screaming and insulting me for being a nothing but a disappointment.  
I had never encountered a situation where I would have been able to help one if the 'beasts' but I would do it again.  
Because I couldn't just ignore the cruelty and injustice.  
The merfolk fascinated me.  
When they were in the water, they had a fin and when they were on land, they had legs.  
They would have scales in both forms and every individual had different colored scales.  
The mermaid I had saved had blue scales and her merciless had blue ones.  
Their ears were different too.  
They weren't human like but more fish like and looked like the little versions of their fins.  
However, they still looked like humans but more exotic, more stunning even though they were so much more like fish than us.  
Where they were ugly and scary to everyone else, they were nothing but beautiful to me.  
Their voices sounded human but it also reminded of the depths of the ocean and of the waves, which made it very handled to describe the sound of them.  
You had to hear it in order to understand.  
Their voices were luring, yes, but also soothing and so very unique and incredibly wonderful.  
My father despised the merfolk for everything they were and that made them different from us.  
He envied their strength, their skilled fighters and them being so hard to understand and to kill.  
He hated them for being so much more superior than himself.  
"My prince? We are here. The beasts are already here too. Everyone is waiting for you to arrive so that they can start"


	2. A price to pay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hongjoong decides to help even though he knows it will anger his father.

I nodded and entered the great hall.   
Everyone was staring at me.   
There were people representing the aristocracy and nobles and a lot soldiers.   
The caught mermen or sirens were kneeling in front of the throne, chained together like slaves.   
My father was sitting on the throne, of course, and was smiling in a supercilious way.   
It made my stomach churn and I felt like vomiting.   
I took a deep breath, walked towards the throne and stopped next to the prisoners.  
I saw them looking up and eyeing me out of the corner of my eye.   
"You asked for my presence, father?"   
"Hongjoong, my child, you made us wait for quite a long time. Where were you?"   
He was angry but I would anger him even more with my answer, I knew it.   
"At the ocean"   
He frowned.   
"Again? Why do you have to waste your time with that? You should study the history of our kingdom instead!"   
I stayed silent to that and he sighed.   
It was obvious that he was disappointed in me.   
"Well, at least you didn't attempt to make contact to one of the beasts again, I guess"  
"Why did you ask me to come here, father?" I asked slightly annoyed by his dramatic bullshit.   
He pointed at the beats next to me.   
"They have to be excited"   
"What for? The merfolk doesn't attack us or steal anything" I shot back immediately.   
I didn't dare to look at the group next to me.   
"Why do you always have to make things difficult? So what if they haven't done anything like that? They're monster! They have to die!"   
We glared at each other.   
"If they're monsters then what are we?! They haven't done anything wrong!"   
"They're siren! They are the even more dangerous part of the beats! We have to eliminate them before they kill us!"   
"They never attacked first, father! I was always us who killed and hunted them! WE ARE THE MONSTERS HERE! ! WE DESERVE TO DIE BECAUSE WE ARE KILLING INNOCENT PEOPLE!!!" I couldn't help but to yell the last part.   
"HONGJOONG!! ENOUGH!!! I HAVE ENOUGH OF YOUR NONSENSE!!"   
"MY nonsense?? I am NOT the one who hates another race just because I am scared of them for NOTHING!! There is NO REASON TO TREAT LIKE THIS!!"   
"GET OUT!! NOW!!!!" Father screeched, his face red for anger.   
"Why, so that you can murder them for no apparent reasons?!!" I hissed.   
Father shot up from his throne and stomped to me.   
The slap echoed through the hall and made my face burn.   
"Don't you DARE talking to me like that!!"   
"Why, because I'm right and you aren't?"   
I knew I should stop talking and just leave but I just couldn't leave and pretend he wouldn't kill them.   
I just couldn't step aside and let him murder people who didn't do anything wrong.   
"Hongjoong-"   
"I won't leave. I won't let you murder them. I can't ignore this. This is wrong, father!"   
He was shaking his head in disappointment but I was used to I already.   
"You can shake your head in disappointment as long as you want to, I will not change my opinion"   
"Why do you have to keep siding with monsters? What have done wrong to deserve such a failure as my son?"   
His words made my heart break andy eyes burnt with tears.   
"Say what you want about me but leave them alone. Please, father, do the right thing, just this one time. I'm begging you, let them live and give them back to the ocean. Just once" I whispered, my voice sounding strained and about to break.   
He sighed in utter disappointment and disgust.   
"How have you grown so obsessed with them and your theory about them being innocent and decent beings? I never understood your fascination with them it still disgusts me that you're begging for them to live. You're nothing but a disgrace to me"   
His words hurt so bad, I choked on the pain.   
Tears fell from my cheeks, I was unable to hold them in any longer.   
"Let them be. Please" I sobbed quietly.  
I felt something touch my hand on looked down.   
One of the siren had grabbed my hand and was holding it.   
"Look at that, even the beasts think that you're pathetic and have mercy on you" Father spit out.   
I hold onto the cold hand, it was comforting.   
"They're more kind and understanding than you will ever be. The are better beings than you, father"  
He scoffed and spit me into the face.   
"You're so disgustingly weak and emotional, I'm lucky that you're not my only child. Soldiers, get him out of my eyes"   
I was grabbed, thrown out of the hall and locked into my room.   
I fell onto the ground and cried.   
I cried and cried till I couldn't anymore.   
I rubbed the place where my heart was in an attempt to make the pain go away.   
It didn't help so I stopped and just leaned against the door.   
Why does father have to be so cruel?   
Why??   
A soft knocking on the door interrupted my desperate thoughts.   
"My prince? I have food"   
"I'm not hungry, you can leave" I answered weakly.   
A moment if hesitant silence followed my words.   
"My prince, the king decided to execute the beats tomorrow and chained them to the wooden stakes we specifically build for them, nearby the ocean"   
I stayed silent and heard how the servant left after a moment.   
"He didn't feel like executing anyone today, hm?" I snorted at that.   
"Seems about right"   
What if…what if I sneak out and free them?   
The stakes are near the water so that they won't die because of dehydration before the actual execution.   
We could make it into the ocean fast.   
Father probably thought of the possibility of me freeing them….   
Will he kill me?   
….   
Who am I kidding of course he will.   
What will I do…   
Should I risk it?   
I bit my lip.   
It's dangerous but-  
It's the right thing to do.   
Even if I kills me-  
No, BECAUSE it will probably kill me I have to do it.   
If I succeed, they will be free and I die being a good person.   
If I don't, they might die too but at least I TRIED to help.   
It's a good thing anyway.   
It's the right thing.   
What is better than dying while helping those in need?  
….not dying, probably but that isn't the point!   
I have no desire to die but I can't just do nothing and act as if everything is fine.   
I will free them even when it costs my life.   
Freedom always has a price.   
And I'm willing to pay it.


	3. Drastic Decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hongjoong mal some drastic decisions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IMPORTANT NOTE!  
I'm thinking about changing the pairing since I've decided to focus on either Hongjoong x Seongwha, Hongjoong x Yunho or Hongjoong x San. In the next chapter I will introduce them and their different characters more but you can already start voting for a couple by commenting which one you want to see. After a while, I will post the exact date in the next chapter, I will count the voting and then it will be decided which pairing I will go for.

As soon as it was night, I sneaked out by climbing out of my window and on a tree.  
I had planned everything and had thought of anything that could possibly happen and what I would do then.  
I was prepared pretty well.  
I even had made sure to block my door so that no one could try to check on me while I was away.  
Surprisingly fast, I had reached the wooden stakes.  
I had waited long enough so that my eyes were used to the darkness already so that I didn't have to use a torch and possibly get spotted faster.  
I carefully walked closer, keeping an eye on my surroundings.  
The sirens were still awake, like I had thought they would, and were observing me coming closer.  
I made my way to the lock of a dark haired siren.  
He looked at me but didn't move.  
Luckily, I had stolen the key for those kind of chains right after I had helped the merwoman.  
I opened the lock and walked to the next till I had freed all three.  
"You should leave, as soon as possible"  
"You are the human that helped my sister too, aren't you?" One of them suddenly asked.  
"Your sister?"  
"Yes, my sister and her child? They were attacked by soldiers?"  
I blinked.  
"That was your sister?! What a coincidence" I muttered surprised.  
"It isn't a coincidence, it's fate. If it's you who saved Yunho's sister then it's fate" The fox like looking one answered.  
"It definitely is since Hongjoong will die because of you just like he was punished for saving your sister"  
Father is here.  
My blood felt cold all of the sudden and I got scared.  
He walking towards me, a sword in his hand.  
I gulped and couldn't help but shy away from him.  
He was smiling while looking grim.  
"You thought of this, didn't you? And you still decided to side with those monsters even though you knew I will be ready to kill you"  
"Yes, of course, I knew but I had to at least try and help" I answered shakily.  
Fear paralyzed my body and made me unable to move.  
"What is wrong with you, human king? He's your son, isn't he?! How can you kill your own son!" The one who's sister I saved, Yunho, hissed.  
"Don't you dare talking about family, monster! He's the youngest and a disgrace! At least his older brother is a good child"  
I flinched a bit.  
"My brother is insane! He's insane because of you!"  
"So what if he is? He's still doing what he's supposed to do, isn't he?"  
"Disgusting!" The dark haired mermen hissed.  
"It's time to die for failing as a human being and member of our family, Hongjoong" Father growled and lifted the sword.  
I dodged his attacks but then he changed his strategy and I knew I would die.  
He charged at Yunho, they had made it to the ocean and were about to step into the water, and I jumped in front of him.  
The sword made its way through my chest as if it was butter.  
The pain hit me hard but I couldn't scream.  
I gasped and coughed.  
I coughed blood and whimpered.  
"Hongjoong!"  
"A failure till the end. To die just to protect a beast, that's truly pathetic" Father muttered and spit me in the face.  
And then, he ripped the sword out of my chest and kicked me.  
I fell right into the waves, my blood mixing with the water.  
I stared into the sky, unable to breath.  
Everything hurt, I was getting weaker with every beat of my heart.  
It was impossible to survive a wound like that.  
"Look at that, your beloved monsters are watching you die. What do you think? Will you still want to protect them when they rip you into pieces?" Father grabbed me and dragged me deeper into the water.  
He threw me into the ocean and when I blinked, I was already under water.  
I was surrounded by the merfolk.  
Just before I lost consciousness, I felt someone grabbing me and a light touch on my lips.  
When woke up again, I was surrounded by light.  
I blinked.  
Where am I?  
"Hello there, little prince. It's good to see that you're awake. Seongwha, Yunho and San were very worried about you"  
I turned my head.  
A beautiful mermaid was swimimg in my direction.  
She smiled softly and caressed my cheek.  
"You were unconscious for a few weeks"  
"For weeks? How?" I asked.  
I was feeling sleepy and exhausted.  
My chest didn't exactly hurt but it burnt.  
"You body had to adjust to the magic. Human bodies aren't used to getting in touch with it"  
I frowned.  
"Magic?"  
I felt stupid for repeating everything she told me but I was extremely confused.  
Luckily, she didn't seem to be annoyed.  
"The ocean, or to be more precise our ancestors, have their own magic. For us it's normal that our ancestors supports us and are with us all the time. They don't just vanish but stay in order to guide and protect the younger generations."  
"Incredible" I whispered fascinated.  
She patted my cheek lovingly.  
"They saved you, little prince. It's impossible to make a human to one of us but they adjusted your body so that you can breath under water and communicate with us. They marked you and made you a part of our society. Every member of the merfolk will recognize you as one of us"  
"That's amazing but still, I'm weaker and more fragile than you are. I will be more of a hindrance for you" I mentioned, feeling uneasy.  
"You are able to make contact with other humans, you are a prince. You are very valuable to us. You could end the war the humans brought upon us"  
"My father attempted to kill me. I'm not a prince anymore. There's not much I could do" I answered frowning.  
"You were born as a royal member of the Destiny Kingdom. That's not something your father can take away from you"  
"What about my brother then? Even if my father dies I wouldn't be the crown prince. And my brother is a very aggressive person. He wouldn't hesitate to poison the ocean just to extinguish the merfolk"  
My words made her frown.  
"If that's true then we will have a serious problem…"  
Not if I kill him.  
The thought shot through my mind and I froze.  
It was true and probably the best choice but… could I really kill my own brother?  
He had a horrible personality and always hated me for whatever reason but I wasn't like him.  
I did not enjoy killing others.  
I wasn't a sadist nor a psychopath.  
I disliked violence, I always had.  
However, making decisions is never easy and being a king meant to make difficult decisions no matter of you liked or not.  
The most important wasn't what you liked or not it were the people living in your kingdom. The people you have to protect, the people who trust you and who are innocent.  
I took a deep breath.  
I have to do what is right in order to give the innocent ones the peace they deserve.  
"What if I kill him? That would solve the problem"  
She looked at me with wide eyes.  
"Well, yes, that would definitely solve it but-"  
"I will do it. If I don't neither your people nor mine will have a peaceful life. It will be war instead  
I cannot let that happen even if I means that I have to drown the earth with my brother's blood"  
"I understand and will accept your offer then. I also understand now why humans are so obsessed witht the idea of having a king"  
"What do you mean?"  
"Well, we don't really have leaders or kings and queens. If important decisions have to be made we come together, discuss it and vote for the best option. But it's rare for us to have only one person or only a few people who decide everything because we feel uncomfortable for that. However, now that I talk to you I can somewhat understand it. You see, we don't feel the need to have someone who's responsible for us and who we can blame but to humans it's a very important thing"  
"We humans aren't as strong and independent as the merfolk is. We feel safe if there are many other humans around us. We are weaker and more fragile which is why we are scared of many things. To be responsible for everything you do is exhausting, especially if I comes to important decisions like having an alliance or enough food etc which is why we have always lived with having one leader. Human beings aren't as peaceful as you are. We are greedy and jealous so we take advantage of each other, especially the weaker ones. Our society isn't as balanced as yours we have a lot poor people who envy the rich and noble and who can barely survive because nobody cares for strangers only for themselves and maybe their families. They are need a strong person to lead and unite us in order to establish order. If we don't there would be chaos and death everywhere" I explained and she hummed thoughtful.  
"I see, I never thought of that. We aren't materialistic beings. We don't care about being rich because to us it was always more important to be social and to have good connections to others"  
"We as humans have to learn from the merfolk because if we don't we will never be as great as you are, I believe"  
She smiled.  
"What are curious and fascinating human you are. San, Seongwha and Yunho made the right decision by dragging you into the water and to us"  
"Where even are they? And, even thigh I'm embarrassed that I was so rude not to have asked by now, may I know your name?" I asked.  
She laughed.  
"My name is Hyuna, little one. They are with my mate at the moment. They are waiting for you to wake up"  
"Then we shouldn't keep them waiting" I said and stood up.  
I was stumbling a bit and felt weak.  
"Are you sure? Your body hasn't fully adjusted to the changes yet and your injury is still weakening you"  
"Father probably already informed father about what happened. The longer we wait, the more dangerous it gets"  
Hyuna frowned but took my arm to stabilize me.  
"I guess we really can't wait any longer then. San, Seongwha and Yunho will not be happy about you already walking around and planning dangerous missions, you know? They will insist being with you all the time and protecting you. But that's normal, no worries"  
"I don't think that such a behavior is normal for strangers" I mentioned confused.  
She stared at me in silence.  
"My mistake, I always forget that humans aren't like us. You don't have destined mates" She muttered quietly.  
"I'm sorry?" I asked, not being able to make out what she said.  
"Nothing, I was just talking to myself.  
I just nodded, what else was I supposed to do.  
It was weird to be underwater but breath and talk like I wasn't.  
I walked around as if I didn't just wake up in a pink, gigantic coral.  
That Hyuna was swimming next to me while helping me walk didn't help either and just made the situation even more surreal.  
She opened a door (how did they get a door into a coral???) and I was met with four mermen (Hyuna said that male mermaids were called mermen all the time and that only humans made a difference between those who knew how to fight and those who don't) staring at me.  
"He is awake already? I thought he would sleep for another one or two weeks" The unknown mermen, probably Hyuna's mate, said frowning.  
"Hyojong is right, you shouldn't be awake and walking around. Your body has not fully recovered yet" Yunho said.  
Seongwha (the dark haired mermen) nodded.  
"You will collapse if you don't rest enough"  
"We don't have the time for that" I answered.  
Hyojong leaned closer.  
"What do you mean?"  
"The little prince believes that his brother won't hesitate to poison the ocean as soon as he becomes king and since he's the oldest he has to be killed before we eliminate his father" Hyuna answered.  
"And how are we supposed to do that? We won't be able to get him to come to us" San mentioned.  
"I know and that's exactly why I will kill him"  
They looked at me with wide eyes.  
"WHAT?!"


	4. King Bang Chan and Chaos

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bang Chan makes an appearance, jealousy erupts and everyone seems to think that Hongjoong has a dead wish.

"NO!!"  
"HE WILL KILL YOU!"  
"No need to scream at me! I dislike the idea of killing my own brother as well but it's the best choice we have" I shouted back.  
San grabbed me a my shoulders.  
"Do you even know how to fight?!"  
I glared at him.  
"Of course I do! Who do you think I am?! A princess that was imprisoned for years?! Just because I prefer peace and I never went to the battlefield doesn't mean I didn't learn how to fight!"  
"I'm not saying that you're weak but I think that experience is crucial for a good soldier. And your brother seems like a very experienced man who also loves to kill. He's the complete opposite of you" Yunho stated concerned.  
"Yunho has a point. Your brother would kill you in just a few seconds" Seongwha added.  
I rolled my eyes at them.  
"You guys are ridiculous. Do I look like I'm insane enough to try and kill him in a sword fight? When I say that I will kill him I mean that I'll build up an army, take back my kingdom and get him killed in either the process of taking over or let him get executed for his war crimes. Or I find a good assassin who does the job"  
"Oh"  
"That's… pretty smart"  
Hyuna giggled at the surprised mermen.  
"You may be elite fighters but you really aren't the best tacticians"  
"Where will you start your journey, little prince?" Hyojong asked.  
"I thought about going to The District first. Their king, Bang Chan, is a good friend of mine. He never liked my father nor my brother so I'm pretty sure he will help me" I answered.  
"The District, hm? Wasn't the previous king infamous for being a tyrant?" Hyuna asked and I nodded.  
"Bang Chan and his friends started a rebellion and took over. Nowadays, the kingdom has great connections and is famous for its sweets and kind king and knights" I explained.  
"I see, that's awesome!" Yunho said happily.  
"How comes that you're friends with him?" San asked curiously.  
"We were childhood friends even though we met only twice when we were young. We communicated a lot through letters and when we met again after 8 years he had already become the king of The District. He is a very gentle and friendly person. His group of friends are now his personal knights. They're all great people and very skilled fighter"  
"And you are sure that they will help you?"  
"I know that they will. My father probably already declared that I was killed by either you guys or was killed by him because you seduced me into rebelling against him. Chan never got along with Father because his views are similar to mine and Father reminds him too much of the old tyrant. He will know that something is wrong"  
Hyojong leaned against the wall for a moment.  
"So you-"  
"Hyuna! Hyojong! The king of The District is here! He wants to talk to you!" A young mermen yelled out of nothing and I flinched in surprise.  
"Give him some magic, so that he can survive under water and bring him here"  
The young merman was gone in a second.  
"He's really fast. I didn't expect him to come and ask us about what happened so soon" Hyuna said and I smiled.  
"Chan is smart. I expected nothing less of him"  
"You seem to be very fond of him" Seongwha commented.  
"I am! He's the first friend I ever had, after all!" I answered grinning.  
I had turned to the door so I didn't notice the weird expressions on the others faces.  
As soon as Chan entered I went to hug him.  
He hugged me tightly.  
"I had hoped you wouldn't be dead and that it was just a lie but… To see you that you're alright makes me feel so relieved. What happened?"  
I stepped back just enough to look into his eyes.  
"When I tried to free them", I gestured towards Seongwha, Yunho and San, "Father stabbed me and pushed me into the sea thinking that they would end me"  
"He stabbed you?! Where?! Why are standing then? You should sit down and rest!"  
I rolled my eyes at him.  
"I'm not a poor, helpless princess who has a faint heart. I'm fine"  
Now it was Chan's turn to roll his eyes at me.  
"No need to be sassy with me. I'm just saying that you should take your injury a bit more serious"  
"Yes, yes, whatever. That's not what I want to talk about right now.I need your help"  
"My help? With what?"  
"I plan on killing my brother, as well as my father, and I need you to help me with that" I answered bluntly.  
Chan stared at me for a moment.  
His expression changed from shock to understanding to horror.  
"They will kill you within seconds! You wouldn't have a chance in a sword fight!"  
Frustrated, I threw my arms in the air.  
"Why does everyone think that I have a death wish all of the sudden?! I'm not stupid, for fuck's sake! I never liked sword fights! I don't plan on having one with neither of them!"  
Chan blinked at my sudden outburst and smiled sheepishly.  
"Oh… That's pretty smart"  
"That's what we said too!" Yunho said grinning.  
I rubbed my face and groaned.  
"Idiots! I'm surrounded by idiots!"  
"Now, now l, that's not very nice. We all have our own… qualities, if you understand what I mean" San said smirking.  
Ah… So he's more the flirty type.  
"San, behave! You're talking to the prince who saved us, after all" Seongwha scolded him sternly and the younger mermen smiled somewhat sheepishly.  
"Sorry, sorry, I will behave"  
Seongwha is a mother hen and Yunho is…  
I glanced over to the gentle giant and he smiled happily at me.  
Yunho is a ray of sunshine.  
So cute!  
Anyway, anyway…  
I have to focus.  
Chan is staring holes into my back and I don't think I like what he's thinking of.  
I turned to my friend and looked at him.  
He just shrugged while smirking in a way that made me frown.  
The problem with Chan was that he was very fast with coming up with ideas and conclusions that were heavily influenced by romance novels.  
One time he wrote me that he suspected his mother to have an affair with her maid simply because he had read a book where it had been like that.  
He was devastated when there was no affair.  
However, he is never completely wrong.  
His mother didn't have an affair with her maid but after three years it came out that his father had one with that maid.  
It was a scandal but Chan had been so smug about being right I wanted to strangle him.  
Anyway, his ability to somewhat foresee the future was weird and annoying and I really didn't want to deal with it.  
But of course, nothing could stop him from telling me.  
"So… You and the mermen, huh? Didn't thought you would fantasize about having a harem" The moment he ended that sentence he groaned in pain because I had boxed him into the shoulder.  
"Shut up! I don't want to hear one of your theories" I hissed.  
Chan chuckled at me and patted playfully my head.  
"No need to hiss at me, little prince"  
I felt my eye twitch and rubbed my temples in a calming manner.  
"Sometimes I want to do nothing more but strangle you, Chan"  
"Awww,I love you too" He cooed teasingly which I returned with a glare.  
"You get along really well" Yunho stated all of the sudden.  
He looked… displeased.  
"Must be your imagination" I answered.  
"Actually, when we were kids we promised each other to marry when we grow up" Chan stated, bring as unhelpful as he always is, which made the mermen warriors freeze.  
"You… what?" San asked slowly.  
"Whatever happened in your childhood does not affect you as adults" Seongwha said in a threatening manner.  
It reminded me that I read somewhere that the merfolk can be very possessive of people they find special.  
The reason for that wasn't described but I always understood it as a possessiveness of a toy, as an example.  
Not wanting to upset them even more I quickly agreed with him.  
"Of course it doesn't. He was my fiancé before the rebellion but we broke it off a while ago"  
That didn't had the calming effect I thought it would had.  
Now not only Yunho was frowning but the other two were as well.  
"No worries, no worries, I don't intend to marry him. He's all yours" Chan said in an, weak, attempt to solve the tension.  
Weirdly enough, it seemed to work which made me frown while everyone else relaxed.  
The merfolk really was mysterious…  
I should work harder to understand them better!  
I cannot allow myself to anger them by overestimating my knowledge and making mistakes.  
They really are fascinating beings.  
Even though I really don't understand why Chan seems to understand them better than I do.  
He was never interested in learning more about them and their ways…  
How curious….  
However, since everyone seemed happy I didn't dwell on my thoughts.  
Surely, I would understand when I spend more time with them.  
"So… who of you will act like Hongjoong's personal guard or in other words, who will become his fiancé?" Chan cheerfully asked.  
I had been caught in my thoughts so I didn't notice anything till I was grabbed.  
"What are you thinking of? Hopefully your future husband because that's who you're going to choose now!"  
I blinked at Chan in confusion.  
"Hah?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After I finally managed to finish this chapter, I have to ask you to choose who Hongjoong's future husband will be for this fanfiction. So please comment your favorite ship! The one with the most votes will be it!!  
I hope you enjoyed this chapter, see you next time!  
Take care!! <3


	5. Everyone needs a Yunho in their life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hongjoong's future husband gets chosen and fluffy fluff happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the majority voted for Yunho X Hongjoong so that's you'll get!  
From now on this a Yunhoong fanfiction! I'll change the tags asap and I hope you'll continue to enjoy this fanfiction!  
I hope you'll like it and thank you for all the comments <3

"Wha- I can't just choose a fiancé, what the fuck Chan?!"   
He just laughed, patted my shoulder and said, "Why of course you can. It's the perfect plan! A husband who can protect you is great! And that means that you won't have to worry about anyone trying to win you over just to get the throne and do the stabby stabby to you. It's no fun to commit not alive just because of one backstabbing bitch"   
"The stabby stabby? No, you know what forget that, I don't want to know why you say it like that", I sighed slightly pained and rubbed my eyes.   
"You're a wise man, my dear mate. No wait, I can't call you mate anymore. Not in the context of you choosing a mermen as your husband", he said, slightly cringing.   
Even more confused, I just stared at him.   
I know him so long already and still have no clue what the heck is going on inside his head.   
And it's probably the best that I don't.   
"Oh you don't know? Mercreatures choose mates that they are with forever. It's like being married but more intense"   
And to be honest, I'm not even surprised that he knows that.   
I learned very quickly not to question Chan and his knowledge.   
"But I can't just choose a husband or a mate or whatever without their consent. Besides, we don't even know each other. How am I supposed to choose a husband when I don't know if I like that person or not?!"   
Chan nodded proudly.   
"Ah yes, the importance of consent. You truly are an intellectual, my friend"  
"Actually, we don't necessarily have to know a person personally to choose him or her as our mate. The moment we meet someone we know if we are compatible and how compatible we are. A lot of mates didn't know each other before the courting ritual but their compatibility was so high that there was no doubt they would make a great couple. It's an instinct that is never wrong" Seongwha explained.   
Fascinating!   
I have to write this down!   
Mother never mentioned something like that and it explains a lot and I really, really have to write this down for later generation to remember and it's really incredible and-  
"Before you get lost again and just start writing things down we should end this conversation first, Hongjoong" Chan said grinning and patted, again!, my head as if I was a dog.   
The amount of disrespect I have to deal with!   
Just because I'm small!   
This is bullying!!   
"I'm pretty sure your the most compatible with Yunho" San said and the merbeings nodded.  
"Yes it's almost 90%", Yunho added.   
"Do probabilites ever go higher than 90%?", I asked curiously.   
"Rarely, especially not at the first meeting. The more mates grow closer the higher the probability gets. While there are couple where it never reaches 100% or even 90% it's very rare for that to happen" San answered and I hummed curiously.   
How very interesting.   
"You are so to say a perfect match", Hyuna added smiling.   
"Yunho it is then. Since we came to an agreement for that and since I already agreed on helping you get your kingdom back it is time for me to go back to my own kingdom. It was nice seeing you, Hongjoong. I'll send Felix to aid you as he's the best assassin we got. Good luck and have! Especially, while doing the naughty naughty with your mate" Chan said and giggled when I slapped his arm.   
"See ya"   
And with that he left.   
Why do I have a friend like him?   
Can I please get another friend who isn't as weird as Chan?   
Please?!   
I sighed.   
"Well, Yunho it is then. When you really don't have anything against that I have to ask you how courting and all that works because it's probably different from us humans, isn't it?"   
Yunho, being the ever happy giant puppy he was, smiled and nodded excitedly.   
"Of course! It's pretty different but no worries, I won't bring you a dead shark who's heart you'll have to eat. That's a tradition we don't do anymore!"   
A shark's heart?!   
"Ah, good to know…" I muttered more to myself while grimacing at the thought of eating a raw heart of a shark just like that.   
Eew, god no!   
Yunho only giggled, pulled me into a hug and patted my head softly.   
"It will be fun, no worries I always preferred more aesthetic and cute gifts anyway!"   
"So, there are different ways of courting?"   
"Yes. There a few rules like 'don't force yourself onto the one your courting, no means no' or 'be careful not to injure or scare your possible mate away if they aren't impressed' but that's all. Some mermen kill a rival in a duel, some focus on bringing gifts and others build houses or furniture for the ones they want to court. Most courtings are very tamed and no blood is shed but some prefer more old and traditional ways of courting like fights or tasks that can be pretty dangerous" Hyuna explained softly.   
I looked up at Yunho and hummed thoughtful.   
"I'm pretty happy you're more of a softie then. I really couldn't deal with you tearing others apart"   
Apparently, that was the right thing to say because Yunho started smiling so much that he almost seemed glow with happiness.   
And suddenly, he started to purr like a cat and rubbed his cheek at mine?   
"What is he doing?"   
"He showing you how happy he is"   
"By purring like a cat?"   
"We can only purr when we are truly happy and comfortable. As we are honest beings we cannot hide our feelings very well", Seongwha explained to me softly.   
Not knowing what to do with that information and not sure how that was anatomically possible, I just clumsily patted his head.   
After a few moments, I looked at Hyuna to find out why exactly Yunho wasn't moving even a tiny bit.   
She seemed to understand my silent question and smiled lovingly.   
"Since you are so compatible he feels so comfortable with you that he isn't willing to let you go. He's a person who loves cuddles so you should get used to it"   
"Not that I'm complaining but shouldn't we plan what to do?"   
"Your injuries aren't healed yet so you should rest a few more days and use the chance to get to know Yunho better. Do not fret, little prince. Everything will be alright", Hyuna answered and I nodded hesitantly.   
"Well then, where am I staying then? I take it that Yunho would want me to stay as close as possible?"   
Yunho hummed softly.   
"You will stay with me"   
I thought about arguing with how sure he sees to be but decided against it.   
When they have mates they're probably a bit possessive as well and I don't have an issue with that as long as he doesn't want to control my whole life.   
Which is probably not something Yunho would do.   
He seems to be a very soft and caring person.   
I'm a looking guy to be his mate…   
Where did that thought come from??   
Not that it's wrong.   
Why am I getting embarrassed at being happy to him wanting to be with me?   
That's a good thing!   
He'll be a great husband, I'm sure of it.   
I smiled, feeling actually content with my situation for the first time.   
Hyuna is right, everything will be fine.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> !!!WARNING!!! LIGHT DESCIBTION OF GORE  
IF YOU DON'T LIKE OT THEN SKIP THE MEMORY PART WHEN HONGJOONG PONDERS ABOUT THE INTENSITY OF EMOTIONS OF THE MERFOLK!!!

I followed Yunho to his coralle house, he was dragging me there to be correct since he had grabbed my hand and had started swimming into a certain direction.  
I could only chuckle at his excitement.   
He really is a giant merpuppy, isn't he?   
Yunho glanced at me in a questioning manner but I just shook my head and he accepted it.   
I was mesmerized by how beautiful his house was.   
The blue coralle was decorated with all kinds of pretty shells.   
"It's really pretty"   
He beamed at me and nodded in agreement.   
"My sister helped me decorating it"  
"How is she doing? Well, I hope?"   
An emotion I couldn't recognize flashed over his face but was gone within seconds and replaced by a soft smile.   
"She's doing very well, thanks to you. She found a mate and moved pretty far away but she's very happy"  
I hummed softly.   
"I'm glad to hear that. I had hoped she wouldn't be too badly injured to live a good life after what my father's men did to her"   
Yunho looked at me with a soft but sad smile. The merpuppy carefully cupped my right cheek with one hand and stroke it softly with his thumb.   
"You did everything you could, Joongie. You saved her life. That's more than everyone else did. You did a great job helping her"  
His soft voice and lovely eyes were captivating.  
I wanted to believe him.   
God I wanted nothing more than to listen to him speak and make him happy.   
His praise was addicting.   
Is this the mermaid effect everyone warns you about?   
If it is then I understand why they are scary for most people and utterly fascinating for others.   
The power they hold over you just by talking and looking at you was mesmerizing.   
And maybe even a turn on but you didn't hear that from me.   
Blinking, I tried to focus but Yunho was incredibly distracting.   
"Stop staring at me please, I can't focus of you do that", I complained lightly.   
He tilted his head and the staring intensified.   
My face grew warm and, for whatever reason, I was feeling shy.   
He's just looking at you, get a hold of yourself!   
This is ridiculous!   
I'm used to people staring at me.   
So, why is my heart fluttering when he does the bare minimum and isn't even trying to make me blush???   
"You are really pretty, Joongie. So petite and beautiful. I want nothing more than to hold you in my arms and never let you go", he whispered softly.   
By the gods, is he insane?!   
He can't do this to my poor, weak heart!   
What the fuck?!   
Not sure how to react and slightly panicked I couldn't do much else but to look at him and blush furiously.   
He smiled and leaned closer and fuck, his smile is so pretty.   
Yunho is damn beautiful and handsome.   
What have I done to deserve him?   
"You are even more pretty when you are blushing", he stated with a low voice and I nervously licked my lips.   
His eyes followed the movement hungrily and I was getting the feeling that this situation could easily escalate because of the intense sexual tension between us.   
Would I mind?   
Very much not.   
Would it be overwhelming?   
Yes.   
Was this whole relationship, mate thing going a bit too fast?   
Probably.   
But then again, merpeople had only one mate and from the moment on they decided to court someone and were accepted, they fell in love.   
And their love was intense and passion.   
Mother had noted that their emotions were more intense than ours and that this was why it was so difficult for most people to deal with the merfolk.   
She has also written down her theory that, once a human accepted being courted by a mer, the human would start becoming a mer to a certain extent.   
Meaning, that the emotions of the human would become as intense as their mate's in order to match the love given to them.   
They might even be able to breath under water or gain special abilities but she hadn't been as sure about that as she was about the emotions thing.   
And maybe that was why I wasn't disturbed by Yunho's intense desire to shower me with love and the possessiveness that would, no doubt, come soon as well.   
It was a part of the merfolk everyone knew about.   
There were enough gruesome experiences humans had made that had become common knowledge.   
My younger brother had to make such an experience which had ended deadly and I had observed the whole thing.   
He had captured a mer couple by using their baby as a bait.   
While he had laughed and belittled them, I had sneaked in and carefully taken the baby, making sure that the couple had seen me taking and hiding it in my jacket.   
At some point my brother had turned around and discovered that the baby was gone and that I was present in the room as well.   
Furious, he had yelled at me for being weak and always trying to free the monsters and that I better tell him where child was while explaining very detailed how he would slaughter the little thing.   
I had carefully backed away and acted as if I didn't knew what he was talking about.   
I had been planning to free the couple as soon as he was gone to search for the child but before I could do that he mad made a grave mistake.   
Being the sick, vulgar asshole he was he had grabbed the mermaid and sexually harassed her.   
And then everything had escalated so fast that I hadn't been able to comprehend it at first.   
Within a second, there was blood everywhere and his head had rolled over the ground.   
I had been horrified and almost dropped the child I had been hiding.   
Still, I had somehow freed them and given back their child that much I knew but I didn't remember much of that accident since I had been in shock.   
As terrific and horrible that experience had been, I continued helping and freeing as many captured merpeople as I could.   
Why?   
Because at that point I had been able to understand why the situation escalated to that extent.   
It was well known that the mer were intense creatures and that we were no match to them when it came to strength.   
It had been my brother's fault.   
Besides, I probably would have done the same.   
He had already threatened and harmed their child and him sexually harassing the mermaid probably had been too much.   
Not that was a good excuse for humans but we had to keep in mind that they weren't humans.   
Our laws and stereotypical behaviors don't apply to them.   
A sharp pain shot through my body and I blinked.   
Did he just bite my lip?   
"Why are you not focusing on me? What is on your mind that is more important than me?", Yunho rasped out darkly and I gulped.   
And here I am setting a prime example of what not to do when your future-husband is a mermen.   
Not that he would actually hurt me.   
"Sorry, I was pondering over the nature of the merfolk", I apologized to the pouting merpuppy.   
"Oh? We should talk about that but for now", he grabbed me and pulled me into his lap, "you should focus on me only", he purred and the nervousness was back.   
The tension between us was probably thick enough to be cut by a knife at this point.   
Like I had mentioned before their emotions are very intense and because of that situations easily escalate within mere seconds.   
"I'm really sorry for ignoring you", I muttered guilty.   
"Make it up to me then"  
Make it up to him?   
How am I supposed to- oh, he probably wants me to kiss him.   
Heck, why not?   
I caressed his face with both hands and pressed my lips onto his for a gentle kiss.   
Immediately, I was pulled closer and I absent-minded registered the somewhat weird feeling of his fishtail against my legs.   
It was cool and smooth to touch and I curiously rubbed my leg against it.   
Though my intentions were purely innocent the mood shifted once again and I froze upon noticing the sexual tension growing thicker and Yunho's grip in my tightening.   
Did I just accidentally found a method to turn him on?   
Oops?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not romanticising overly possessive behavior nor cruelty or aggressive behavior. As I mentioned and explained in this chapter, these things are not alright when it comes to humans but since the creatures aren't human our rules etc don't apply to them. Please DO NOT take brutal possessiveness as normal and perfectly acceptable in a relationship. That is NOT HEALTHY and if you are in such a relationship please seek help and get out of it as fast as possible.  
Stay safe and healthy everyone!


End file.
